A letter to insurance companies about the real cost of Alzheimer's

Dear insurance companies,

I have an important question for you: why will you pay much higher medical bills for a caregiver who is hospitalized because his/her health has been nearly destroyed by being a full-time caregiver, but you won't pay for the person with Alzheimer's to be admitted to a care facility unless they've been hospitalized for 72 hours?

The person with Alzheimer's is not totally incapacitated yet, according to official definitions, but this individual doesn't ask "What's for dinner?" They don't remember to eat without reminders and meals being set in front of them. And more frequently, they'll stare at the silverware and wonder what to do with it. And they forget what "going to the bathroom" is all about and don't even notice when they've "gone." Thank goodness for incontinence products.

They start to fall more often, which will cost you more than an arm or a leg if they end up in the hospital with a broken leg, hip, etc. They can't handle physical or occupational therapy to improve because their brains don't understand or remember the most basic of movements or what they were asked to do a minute before. And the caregiver can't pick up or move this person by themselves anymore because caregiving has wore them out or they're prone to injuries that will require hospitalization or therapy or rehab or whatever.

Cha-ching. Cha-ching. Cha-ching.

Now, what was my original question …

Oh yeah, I know it's not cheap, but what will it cost you in the long run? Knowing their loved one is under constant supervision and is safe buys families a lot of peace of mind, which keeps them healthier and able to maintain their own levels of independence for a much longer time.

Is this part of the health care debate? Who knows anymore with all the meaningless and angry rhetoric being tossed around in public debate. No, wait, it's not public debate; it's public hate.

Give that some thought and get back to me when you can. Oh, and please make it easy enough for sleep-deprived caregivers to comprehend.

Thanks,
Monica